Combined grain and stock car.



.No. 762,118 PATENTED JUNE 7, 1904.

.A. BECKER.

COMBINED GRAIN AND STOCK GAR.

APPLIOATION FILED MAR. 19, 1904.

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N0. 762,118. A PATENTED JUNE 7, 1904.

A. BECKER. COMBINED GRAIN AND STOCK CARL APPLIUATION FILED MAR. 19, 1904.

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PATENTED JUNE 7,1904.

1 A. BECKER. COMBINED GRAIN AND STOCK OAR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 19. 1904.

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so MODEL.

Patented June 7, 1904.

UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANTON BECKER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO JOSEPH S. RALSTON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

COMBINED GRAIN AND STOCK CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 762,118, dated June '7 1904.

Application filed March 19 1904.

Be it known that I, ANTON BECKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,- have invented a new and useful Combined Grain and Stock Car, of which the following is a specification in its best form now known to me, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which similar numerals indicate the same parts throughout the several views.

My invention relates to a car which can be used for carrying two kinds of load-as, for instance, stock and grain which are not suitable to be carried in the same car, either because of the necessity of excessive cleaning after the use for one kind of load before the other can be used or because ofthe necessity of using diiferent forms of car. In the case of the products named aside from the question'of cleaning an open car is required for the use of stock and a closed car required for grain or similar products.

The object of my invention is to provide a car in which it is possible to convert the car, from a condition for the use of one of such loads to the condition for use of the other kind of load with great efliciency and little loss of time.

My invention consists in its preferred form in a novel form of mechanism capable of accomplishing these objects, which can be easily and cheaply constructed and which is efficient in operation and not readily liable to get out of order.

My invention also consists in many details of construction, which will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed as the specification proceeds.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a central sectional detail view lengthwise of the car, taken longitudinally approximately through the center of the car. Fig. 2- is a sectional plan view of the inside of the car, taken on line 2 of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a sectional end view taken on line 3 of Fig. 1-.

In constructing the car of my invention I preferably provide a car of the dumping type in which grain or similar material may be dis- Serial No. 198,923. (No model.)

charged through the floor of the car. As an illustration of such a car, I have shown the car which is fully described and claimed in my two previous applications, Serial No. 190,415, for a metallic flush-floor dump-car, and Serial No. 194,407, for dumping mechanism for metallic cars. The dumping underframe of the car consists, as illustrated in the drawings, of a central plate-girder 10, extending from bolster to bolster 11, and a supplemental central girder 12, made of two channel-irons 13 and angle-pieces 14, supporting hinge-castings 15, as shown in Fig. 3, extending from each bolster 11 to the end sill 16. On the top of the central plate-girder bolster are also secured hinge-castings 15, as shown in Fig. 1. Intersecting the central bolster at successive points along the car and extending across the car are aseries of cross-bearers 18, pivoted. to the hinge-castings 15 above referred to, and on the central bolster are a series of doors 20, adapted to swing up between each pair of cross-bearers or between a crossbearer and bolster or a bolster and the end sill and form a portion of the floor of thecar to support a portion of the load, and these doors are also adapted to swing down between these cross-bearers or bolsters and permit a portion of the load to slide outward from the center of the car. These doors are operated by crank-arms 22, actuated byhand-levers 23, in the manner shown and described and claimed in detail in my second application above referred to, Serial No. 194,407. Hinged upon the top of each cross-bearer and bolster are a pair of wings 25, adapted to normally restlevel with the floor and adapted when the floor-doors are tilted to swing down upon their hinges and allow the portion of the load upon them to slide off from the tops of the cross-bearers or bolsters, thereby cleaning that portion of the floor of the car. This is more fully described and claimed in the first of my prior applications referred to, Serial No. 190,415. A car having an underframe so constructed when equipped with inclosing devices is suitable for carrying grain or other similar products, but if used for an unclean loadas, for instance, live stock-is soon rendered so dirty that it is impossible to use it for these purposes. Similarly, if a railroad provides an ordinary stock-car with open sides and ends of the usual type this car cannot be used efficiently with constructions heretofore in use for practically anything but live stock, no matter how thoroughly that car may be cleaned. In the mechanism of my invention I combine a stock-car top with an underframe of a car such as heretofore described, together with mechanism which renders the use of the car for both of these purposes both possible and profitable. In doing this I erect upon the underframe just described a stockcar top of the common type consisting of upright corner-posts 27, intermediate posts 28, and diagonal bracing 29, covered with spaced cross-slats 30, the whole capped by a roof 32 of any of the ordinary types of construction. This stock-car-top frame is also equipped with the usually doors for entrance and eXit of the stock from the car.

Hinged at 35 at or near the intersection of the upright side of the stock-car top is one door or a plurality of doors placed end to end, as is most convenient, from one end of the car to the other, as shown in Fig. 2. These doors are, as shown at the left of Fig. 3, adapted to swing down and cover the main underframe-floor of the car and also adapted to swing up against the inside of the car, preferably against the belt-rails 38, extending around the inside'of the car, thereby closing the open spaces between the slats 30. This swinging motion of these lower doors also has the very important function that dirt left upon the doors 36 after the car has been used as a stock-car is upon the outside of the door when the secondary door 36 has been swung up against the belt-rail 38 in the manner described, and the under side of the secondary door 36 is thus made a portion of the inside wall of the car, and the lower underframe of the car having been protected by the door 36 in the manner described when the car was used as a stock-car is now left clean. In practice it is more convenient to proportion the doors 36 upon opposite sides of the car, so that they meet each other in the middle of the car, as shown; but manifestly this proportion may be varied without departing from the principle of my invention.

Pivoted at 40 inside of the car at or near the intersection of the side of the stock-car frame and the roof are other secondary doors 41, adapted to be fastened by hasps 42 or other suitable means in an approximately horizontal position against the roof of the car, as shown at the left of Fig. 3, and adapted when released to swing down, as shown at the right of Fig. 3, against the side of the car and preferably against the belt-rail 38, heretofore described. These doors 41 are so proportioned that they meet the doors 36 when swung up against the side of the car, as just described,

and the two doors 36 and 41 make a complete lining for the inside of the car. When the car is used for a stock-car, the doors 41 are then swung up against the roof of the car and fastened, as described, entirely out of the way of the stock. When the car is to be used as a grain-ear or for similar purposes, they are swung down, as described, thereby covering up any dirt from the stock which may be on the inside of the upper portion of the stockcar frame and presenting their clean surfaces which were next to the roof when the car was used as a stock-car as a portion of the inside wall of the car. The doors 36 and 41 when swung against the side of the car are fastened in position by hasps 42 (shown in Fig. 1) or other suitable means. In the construction shown the hasps 42 are secured to the doors 4:1 by chains 43, so that they are adapted to act as fastening devices for the doors ll in both positions of these doors.

The structure just described runs the entire length of the car either as a single door or a series of doors meshing with each other and completely covering the stock-car entrance-door, as well as the ordinary side of the stock-car frame, when the car is to be used for grain or similar material as its load. In order to take care of the end of the ear for this double loading, I make one half of the end of the car, preferably the lower horizontal half, in a solid wall 46; but this half of the end may be the top half or the vertical half without departing from my invention. Pivoted at the center of the end of the car to this solid portion just described, at 47, is a door or doors 4.8, adapted to swing up to the position shown in Fig. 1, and close the open space in the end of the car above the solid portion 16, so that the end of the car can be used as a grain or similar load-carrying car, and this door is also adapted to swing down from the position shown in Fig. 1 through one hundred and eighty degrees until it is in contact with the solid portion 46, thereby leaving the upper portion open and protecting the solid portion 46 from the stock-car dirt when the car is used as a stock-car. When the car has been so used, the door can be swung back to the position shown, thereby exposing to the grain or similar load the inside of the door &8 which was in contact with the solid portion 46 when the car was used as a stock-car, and thus leaving the inside of the end of the car clean. This door is adapted to be held up in this raised position by suitable means. (Not shown.)

Manifestly the construction just described as applying to the end of the car could be applied to each side of the car adjacent to the end and an end construction corresponding to the side construction shown could be applied to the end of the car without departing from my invention.

I do not wish to be limited to the exact de-- tions, in one of said positions protecting the floor of the car from the stock and in the other position closing a portion of the open side of the car.

2. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with a car-underframe having a permanent floor, an inclosing top frame mounted on said car and a door pivoted inside of the car at or near the intersection of said permanent car-floor and the upright side or end of said frame-top adapted to swing down and form a supplemental car-floor covering a portion of said permanent floor, and adapted to swing up against the side or end of the frame.

3. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with a car-u'nderframe having a permanent floor, doors forming a part of said permanent floor adapted to be opened and discharge the load upon them through the floor, a top frame above said floor and a door pivoted inside of the car at or near the intersection of the permanent car-floor and the sides or end of said car-frame, adapted to swing down and form a supplemental protectingfioor for a portion of the main floor when the car is used for an unclean load, and adapted to swing up'against the side or end of the car-frame when grain or similar material is to be carried.

4:. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with the floor, a side or end, and the roof of a car, a door pivoted inside of the car at or near the intersection of the floor and side or end of the car, adapted to swing down and form a secondary floor covering a portion of the permanent floor and adapted to swing up against the side or end of the frame, and another door pivoted inside of the car at or near the intersection of the side or end and the roof of the car, adapted to swing down against the side or end of the car and join with said secondary floor-door when it is swung up and also adapted to swing up against the under side of the roof of the car.

5. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with a permanent floor and roof of a car; an end or side portion permanently closed or solid in one half, and a door pivoted inside the car at the middle of said side or end adapted to swing in opposite directions against said side or end thereby in one position protecting said solid portion and in the other position closing said open portion.

6. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with a permanent floor and roof of a car; an end or side portion permanently closed or solid in its lower half and a door pivoted inside of the car at the middle of said side or end portion, adjacent to the upper part of said solid portion adapted to swing up and down against the opposite halves of said side or end, thereby in one position protecting said solid portion and in the other position closing said open portion.

7. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with the floor, roof and stockcar open sides and ends of a car; a plurality of imperforate doors pivoted at various points within the car adapted when swung to one position to close substantially tight all parts of the sides and ends of the car and when swung to the opposite position to leave the air-spaces of the car open.

8. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with the floor, roof and stockcar open sides and ends of a car; a plurality ofdoors pivoted at various points within the car adapted when swung to one position to close substantially tight the sides and ends of the car and when swung to the opposite position to leave the air-spaces of the car open, part of said doors being so located that when swung to the stock-car position above referred to, they fit together and form a secondary protecting-floor for the main floor of the car.

9. In mechanism of the class described, in combination with the floor, roof and stockcar open sides of a car, a series of doors pivoted at the intersection of the floor and sides of the car, another series of doors pivoted at the intersection of the sides and roof of the car, the lower doors being so proportioned that when swung down they form a protecting-floor for the main floor of the car and the upper doors being arranged to then swing against the roof of the car thereby making it a stock-car and said bottom and top doors being so proportioned that when the doors are swung to opposite positions the doors on each side of the car will close the stock-car openings in the side of the car; and a door so pivoted at the end of the car that when in one position for use as a stock-car-it leaves one half of the end open to the air and protects the other half of the end from contact with the stock and when swung to the opposite position it closes said opening and leaves a clean end inside of the car exposed to the load.

ANTON BECKER.

Witnesses:

CHAS. E. GAYLoRD, DWIGHT B. CHEEVER. 

